1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a combination article which may function as both a hat and a hair-gathering device. More particularly, the present invention relates to a hat having hair-gathering features for forming ponytail or pigtail type structures via the hat construction.
2. Description of Related Art
A number of prior art patents disclose a head covering which may also function as ponytail-forming or pigtail-forming headwear. Some of the more pertinent prior art relating to headwear of this type are briefly described hereinafter.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,753,566 ('566 patent), which issued to Perelman, discloses a Headpiece. The headpiece according to the '566 patent comprises a generally circular crown including a plurality of radially and upwardly extending flexible leaves joined at the base of the crown and having tapered upper free ends, a snap fastener element disposed near the upper free end of each leaf, a generally circular member carrying a plurality of uniformly spaced snap fastener elements near it periphery, and a snap fastener element disposed near the base of each lead, said fastener elements on said circular member and at the bases of said leaves being engageable with the fastener elements at the free ends of said leaves, whereby the headpiece has the configuration of a closed cap when the circular member is attached to the free ends of all of the leaves by means of the fastener elements at said free ends of the leaves and the fastener elements on said circular member, and whereby the headpiece has a selected degree of opening in the crown when at least one lead is curled and its free end is attached to the snap fastener element at the base of the leaf by means of the fastener element at the free end of said leaf.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,357,070 ('070 patent), which issued to Sloan, discloses certain Accessories for Hairdos and Articles of Apparel. The '070 patent describes a flexible disk-like sheet member having a plurality of slits extending radially from a point centrally of the member to provide a plurality of triangular fingers which extend in one direction from flexure of the disk as a pony tail or object to be clamped is passed through the disk in a direction opposite to the direction of it flexure so that the fingers firmly grip the pony tail or object when the disk-like member springs back to is unstressed and the device is removable by flexing the disk in the opposite direction causing the fingers to unleash the pony tail or object.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,321,854 ('854 patent), which issued to Kronenberger discloses a Headwear Piece with Opening to Accommodate Wearer's Hair. The '854 patent describes a headwear piece having a crown defining an opening to accept the head of a wearer, with the crown having a top and bottom, front and back, and a peripheral wall having an annular configuration. An opening is provided through the peripheral crown wall to allow passage therethrough of an accumulation of hair on the head of a wearer with the headwear piece in place on the wearer's head.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,145 ('145 patent), which issued to Stevenson et al., discloses a Cap with Opening having a Removable Closure. The '145 patent describes a headwear item, more particularly a baseball-style cap, having a hole at the top of the crown for a ponytail or braid to pass through and a removable closure that conceals the hole at the option of the wearer. The cap also has a pocket sewn on the inside of the crown to allow the stowage of the removable closure when it is not in use. This arrangement allows the cap to be worn by men and women with short hair as well as by those who wear their hair in a ponytail or braid.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,249 ('249 patent), which issued to Higgins, discloses a Cap with Crown Opening. The '249 patent describes a head cap having an opening on its upper central or crown portion of the cap body, the opening being for receiving a “ponytail” hair style, with the walls around the opening providing lateral support to the ponytail. A neat and trim appearance of the ponytail extending through the opening is achieved, and the attractive vertical support is given to the ponytail even though given only by lateral support. In another embodiment, at least two openings are provided, spaced laterally of the median line of the cap body, accommodating a dual ponytail style.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,454 ('454 patent), which issued to Ryan, discloses a Protective Helmet with Hair Entraining Aperture. The '454 patent describes a protective helmet suitable for safe use by a person having long hair. The helmet includes an outer dome-shaped shell of impact-resistant material configured to fit on the head of a wearer. A liner affixed to the inside of the shell snugly positions the helmet on the head and dissipates impact forces received by the outer shell. An aperture formed through the rear portion of the helmet is sized to enable the wearer's hair to be gathered and entrained therethrough, but is sized small enough to prevent harmful impact penetration of an object such as a ball, hockey puck or the like with the wearer's head.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,644,799 ('799 patent), which issued to Armenta et al., discloses a Headgear Accessory. The '799 patent describes a headgear accessory adaptable to an existing cap, hat, hood, or other article worn on the head, to cover a hole or passage formed therein to provide for the passage of the hair of the wearer therethrough. Using the present headgear accessory, a hole may be placed in the headgear at a location comfortable for the passage of longer hair (e.g., ponytail, braid, etc.) therethrough, and the accessory sewn or otherwise secured to the headgear to provide a decorative closure for the hole. The accessory is preferably formed of a resilient, flexible material such as neoprene sheet, with a synthetic fabric overlay for additional strength and to provide a more attractive appearance. A series of slots are formed in the neoprene/fabric sheet, through which the wearer's hair is passed. The resilient nature of the sheet material biases the material to each side of each of the slots against the hair, thereby providing greater security for the headgear on the wearer's head and yet providing for ease of removal of the headgear. The periphery and edges of the slots of the accessory may be stitched for greater durability and to provide an attractive appearance, if desired. The accessory may be provided separately, or in combination with various types of hats, caps, hoods, and/or other headgear of virtually any type.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,799,334 ('334 patent), which issued to Griffith et al., discloses a Baseball cap for pigtail hairstyles. The '334 patent describes a baseball cap to accommodate pigtail and non-bundled hairstyles comprises a head covering portion formed from a front panel spaced-apart from a back panel by a plurality of side panels. Each side panel includes an opening bound by elastic. The openings are formed by overlapping tabs and selectively covered by a flap. Each opening is sized to accept a bundle of hair passed therethrough. A light deflecting brim extends outward from the front panel.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,494 ('494 patent), which issued to Garnier et al., discloses a Headwear with Closable Hair Opening. The '494 patent describes a baseball-type cap with a closable opening that extends down the crown seam at the back of the cap. The opening is held closed by means of snaps attached to the overlapping portions of material at the seam edges, and is opened by separating the snaps. The opening extends from the top center of the cap to the rear vent, but does not intersect the adjustment strap opening. This maintains the ability of the cap to be adjusted to fit different head sizes. A wearer can open the closure, allowing a ponytail to extend through it with the cap in place on the wearer's head. The cap functions as normal with the opening snapped shut.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,933,872 ('872 patent), which issued to Lema, discloses a Pony Tail Cap. The '872 patent describes a head cap having a substantially hemispherically shaped portion intended to be worn over hair on the head of a wearer and including at least one opening therein large enough to accommodate a bundle of hair passing through the opening and means for securing the cap to the bundle of hair. A gathering mechanism is attached to the cap body around the perimeter of the opening to compressively engage the bundle of hair and hold the bundle of hair and the cap body in a fixed relationship. The gathering mechanism includes a sleeve attached to the cap body along the perimeter of the opening and a drawstring passed through the interior of the sleeve. The drawstring may be drawn to gather the sleeve to compressively engage the bundle of hair. A clamp is provided for holding the drawstring in a drawn disposition to hold the sleeve gathered about the bundle of hair.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,047,571 ('571 patent), which issued to Kelly, discloses a Ponytail Cap. The '571 patent describes an apparel item comprising: a cap, a plurality of cooperating fastening means located within the cap interior, and a hair accessory piece which simulates the appearance of human hair.
United States Patent Application No. US 2004/0006809, which was authored by Crenshaw et al. describes an adjustable aperture containing hat apparatus comprising a head-covering portion, an aperture portion defined by the head-covering portion, and an aperture size adjustment assembly attached to the head-covering portion, adjacent to the aperture portion, for adjusting the size of the aperture portion. Preferably, the aperture portion is located at a top central portion of the head-covering portion. Ordinarily, a hat brim is attached to the head-covering, but can be brimless. With using the adjustable aperture containing hat apparatus, a person's hair braids (ponytail or dreadlocks) can be threaded through the aperture portion, and the aperture size adjustment assembly contracts around the bases of the hair braids (ponytail or dreadlocks).
United States Patent Application No. US 2005/0066421 which was authored by Brundage, describes a hat which comprising a hole surrounded by stitching that provides a barrier from unraveling or unweaving of the hat. The hat provides a hole for a ponytail to extend through such that the wearer's hair does not cause air gaps which would otherwise reduce the hat's effectiveness in protecting the wearer from environmental elements.
United States Patent Application No. 2006/0277658 which was authored by Marsh et al., describes caps and hats which are constructed to focus attention on one of two somehow related but different subjects. A baseball-style cap may have two identical fixed visors or bills positioned opposite to each other, a harlequin type of color scheme (front versus rear) and permanently affixed front and rear indicia that depict two opponents or contenders in a competition. It may also commemorate a competition or game, as by one or more laterally placed event indicia, and it may be adjustable to promote the fitting of different head sizes through the use of stretchable material in the lateral aspects of both the crown and the headband. By a simple front to rear rotation of the cap, the wearer might reverse his or her loyalty as, for example, should the team of preference suffer defeat in the contest. Openings allow a ponytail to be routed through either crown at a location centrally above the visor.
It may be seen from an inspection of the prior art that the art is silent on a hat construction having hair-receiving or hair-gathering notches formed in the body of the hat for guiding or channeling hair during hat adornment for easing ponytail or pigtail formation via the hat construction. The prior art thus perceives a need for such a combination article, the particulars of which are set forth in more detail hereinafter.